


One Night Only

by Braincoins



Series: Explorers [1]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: AU, F/M, First Kiss, First Time, Flut, Oral, Vaginal Sex
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-18
Updated: 2017-03-18
Packaged: 2018-10-07 01:01:54
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,374
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10348920
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Braincoins/pseuds/Braincoins
Summary: Captain Shirogane is the junior member of the diplomatic mission to Altea. They're heading back to Earth tomorrow, which means if Princess Allura wants to act on her desires, she'd better move quickly. Time is never on our side.





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Yliseryn](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=Yliseryn).



> Happy Birthday to [Yliseryn](http://yliseryn.tumblr.com/), a good friend and collaborator! Wishing you a Bon anniversaire and many more to come! :)
> 
> Thanks to [pixie_rings](http://archiveofourown.org/users/pixie_rings/pseuds/pixie_rings) for brainstorming and beta. A huge help both before and after!! <3
> 
> Yes, the title is in reference to the song from "Dreamgirls" ([the Highlights version by Jennifer Hudson](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZxoG76yuXmo), just to be clear).
> 
> Spot the Pirates of the Caribbean reference, btw. ^_~  
> =======================

            Allura stood in the Chapel of Memories, the sunlight casting a riot of rainbows as it shone through the multi-colored memorial stones. Her hand was on one particular stone – aetherite, which was subtly prismatic, shifting colors depending on the angle of light refracting through it – and her eyes were closed as she communed with the memories encased in the stone. She couldn’t miss his footsteps approaching, even though he was trying to be quiet.

            Humans were loud to Altean ears. They always seemed to stomp. Some of the other courtiers took it as arrogance; Allura tended to think of it as the confidence of a galactically-young race. They were just finding their way in the cosmos. They assumed the ground would always be beneath their feet. They didn’t know enough yet to be afraid.

            So these were obviously human footsteps. They had a specific cadence to them that she’d come to recognize as martial. Not all of the human diplomats walked this way, so it further narrowed her list of suspects. There was a caution to the steps – an attempt to be quiet. That, combined with the fact that a human was approaching her alone in the first place, told her exactly who it was.

            She shifted her mind back to the memorial stone. _Help me. I don’t know what to do_ , she thought.

            Her mother’s voice was soft and sad. _Time is never on our side_.

            Allura opened her eyes and turned to smile at her guest. “Captain Shirogane.” Her hand fell from the stone, but not before a soft farewell wafted through her fingertips.

            He froze in place. “I’m sorry to disturb you. It wasn’t my intention, Princess.”

            “It’s no disruption. It’s good to see you again.” And she meant it. She always liked seeing the junior member of the human diplomatic mission. He wasn’t as stuffy as the diplomats, nor as hidebound as the other military members. He was polite without being distant. She had warmed to him instantly (hideous ears or not).

            He smiled a little, and she felt her pulse quicken as he approached. She descended from the dais and walked along the rainbow-scattered aisle towards him. She shifted subtly with each step so that, by the time they met in the center of the chapel, she was of equal height with him.

            She offered her hand to him, and he bowed over it, lifting it to his lips to kiss it softly. She laughed. It was an inside joke between them, when he had admitted he didn’t know whether he should salute or bow or kiss her hand when they were first introduced, and she had asked why he would kiss her _hand_ , and he had explained and then demonstrated and she had accidentally smacked him in the nose, and now it was just how they greeted one another. His lips were soft against her skin, and she thought that he had, perhaps, let them linger this time a touch longer than before.

            He was smiling when he stood, but it faded. “We’re leaving.”

            Her own smile evaporated. “Not now, surely?”

            “No. Tomorrow’s our launch window.”

 _Tomorrow_. She swallowed hard and licked her lips. “So, you… you came to say goodbye then?”

            “I suppose? I just found out, and the first thing I thought to do was to find you and tell you. Coran said you’d be here.”

            “So, one last night on Altea.” She sighed. “I had so much I wanted to show you. You’ve seen so little of our world.”

            “The commander would say we’re not here to sightsee.”

            “That doesn’t mean you can’t do it. Mission parameters change all the time.”

            He laughed. “I’m not sure ‘ride Etaloks through the Blossom Canyon’ is a proper mission parameter.”

            She grinned at him. “You enjoyed it.”

            “I did, at that. My superior officer enjoyed it a lot less.”

            “Oh! Did you truly get in trouble for that? Nothing happened except that we had a nice afternoon together!”

            He lowered his brow and his voice in imitation of Major Iverson. “‘What does it look like to have an officer of the Garrison off gallivanting with the princess of Altea? Did you even consider the protocol?’”

            Allura huffed. “It’s always ‘protocol.’ Do Earthlings lose their ability to have fun as they age?”

            “Just the major,” he informed her solemnly in his own voice.

            She laughed. “So, what would you like to do with your last night here?”

            “Spend it with you.” He winced almost immediately and she cocked her head.

            “Why did you react like that? There’s nothing wrong with what you’ve said.” She smiled and squeezed his hand. “I would like that.”

            He returned the smile but she could still see the anxiety in his eyes. “It’s just… I don’t want to be an imposition on you, Princess.”

            “How many times must I tell you to call me ‘Allura’?”

            “At least once more, as always,” he replied.

            She tsked at him, but she was still smiling. “Well, where to start?”

            “What _is_ this place?” he asked, looking around the chapel. “Coran just gave me directions.”

            “Oh, this is the Chapel of Memories. Every stone holds the memories of someone who is no longer with us: families, friends, great heroes of the past. We can come here and commune with those we have lost.”

            “Wow.” Her smile widened at the new light in his eyes as he re-evaluated the rainbow stones. “Are the colors significant of anything?”

            “Usually it’s just the color they liked most in life, or that their families picked out for them after their passing. The Chapel doesn’t use holographic technology to represent the bodies of the dead; it preserves only their voices, their memories and personalities. So the color of the stone acts as a signifier of that person in place of their actual image.”

            “Now I feel even more like I was intruding,” he confessed.

            She shook her head. “Not at all. I was just talking with my mother.”

            He frowned. “But…”

            “I do it often. She is gone, but something of her spirit lives on in her stone. Come.” She began tugging him forward, towards the dais. “I want you to meet her.”

            He yelped a little in surprise but didn’t try to resist or pull away. “I, uh… I’m not sure I know how to greet a dead queen.”

            “I very much doubt you’d be able to interact with her. It requires Altean energy to activate and communicate with the memories stored inside the stone. But I want to see if she can get a sense of you regardless.”

            “As you wish, Princess.”

            She tsked at the title again, but kept pulling him until they were in front of Mother’s stone. “This is aetherite, one of the rarest and most precious stones on Altea.” She brushed her fingertips over it lightly.

            “It’s beautiful.”

            “Put two of your fingers against it, like so.” She demonstrated, and he did likewise. She smiled and closed her eyes. _Mother?_

_Back so soon, dearest?_

_I brought someone to meet you. He’s not Altean though._

_I know._

            _Can you feel anything of him?_

_It’s like he’s standing very far away, and it’s hard to make him out in the distance. But he feels warm. Strong. Uncertain._

_He probably fears he’s doing something wrong and he will offend you, or me._

_Good. It shows concern for the feelings of others. Unless you think he has some ulterior motive?_

_He seems curious, eager to learn. Very polite._

_How is his smile?_

_Mother._ But she repeated the question insistently, so Allura answered, _Bright. Unreserved. It’s like the sun coming out from behind the clouds._

_Marry him._

_MOTHER!_

_That’s how your father smiled at me when we were first getting to know each other. That’s a good sign._

“Are you alright, Princess? You’re blushing.”

            She opened her eyes and cleared her throat. “I’m fine. And Mother says she has trouble sensing you, but she has some very… inappropriate suggestions.” Those last two words were addressed directly to the stone in an almost accusatory tone.

            Her mother’s voice laughed at her.

            The captain was blushing faintly as well. “Uh… do I want to know?”

            She pulled her hand away. “Oh, you know how mothers are: always wanting to marry their children off.”

            He practically yanked his hand away from the stone as if it had burned him. _Maybe it did. I wouldn’t put it past her._ “Oh!” His face was bright red. “I…t-that would be…!”

            “Highly inappropriate,” she reiterated to the stone. She stuck her tongue out at it, not that Mother would know without the skin-to-stone contact. “Pay her no mind.”

            “Well, I suppose I can do that, given that I didn’t hear or feel anything,” he admitted, sounding somewhat sheepish.

            “I didn’t expect you to,” she reminded him.

            “But… at least she liked me?”

            She snorted. “There you go. What was that phrase you used? Something about silver?”

            “Silver lining. The one good thing in an otherwise bad – or, in this case, awkward – situation.”

            She nodded. “Silver lining,” she repeated. “She does like you.”

            “I’m afraid to ask what the king thinks of me.”

            “He likes you just fine,” she said, although she hadn’t actually talked with her father about him.

            “Really?” he asked her. “Because I’d be surprised if King Alfor really took much notice of me.”

            “Well, he hasn’t said anything _bad_ about you.”

            “That’s not the same thing as liking me.”

            “Picky picky. Besides, why would you care if my father likes you?”

            His blush came back as he stammered, “W-well, I… that is…”

            She grinned. “You’re cute when you blush.”

            “That’s not helping.”

            “Yes, it is! You’re getting a lot redder now.”

            “That’s what I meant!”

            “Well, it helps me just fine,” she teased.

            “If that’s the way you’re going to be, I’ll have to consider you an enemy operative,” he warned with a grin.

            “Oh? And what will that mean, exactly?”

            “Well, I’ll have to be on my guard around you, of course. Analyze your words and movements for any hint of betrayal…”

            She snorted. “You should’ve been doing that anyway.”

            “I was, at first,” he admitted.

            “When did you stop?” she asked, tilting her head.

            “I-I… I don’t know, actually.”

            “Why did you stop?”

            He licked his lips. His blush hadn’t entirely died yet. “It didn’t seem necessary any longer.”

            “Yes, but why is that?” she asked, stepping closer to him. “Why was I suddenly no longer a threat?”

            “Well, negotiations with your father were going well, and…”

            Another step closer. “And?” she asked, holding his gaze with her own.

            “And… you’re…”

            “I’m…?” she prompted, but she didn’t give him time to answer.

            The attack was sudden, and he yelped in outrage as she tickled his ribs mercilessly. “You’re a traitor! Enemy! Betrayal!” he howled, flailing to protect himself from her onslaught. She just laughed as she continued.

            He finally managed to grab hold of her wrists. She could’ve broken away easily but she was still laughing and decided he deserved some reprieve. Besides, he was laughing, too. She liked hearing it.

            As her mirth eased, she realized how close he was to her. Improper thoughts seemed to radiate from his hands along her veins, and she bit her lip as if that would keep them from bursting out of her. She should step away, put the proper distance between them again. But soon there’d be _so much_ distance between them.

            She wanted to invite him to her room, but that wasn’t what was giving her trouble. She’d had lovers before; it wasn’t usually a hard invitation to make. But something about Captain Shirogane was different. When others had said ‘no’ before, she’d shrugged and gone on, mildly disappointed but not truly upset. She didn’t want to risk anything that would send the charming, intelligent captain with the soft smile farther away from her.

            “Princess? Are you okay?” he asked.

            She blinked back to reality and looked at him. The captain was still holding her wrists, still a little red-faced. His gaze softened out of worry and he seemed to stop breathing. She watched him lick his lips, but her eyes couldn’t stay away from his for long.

            It occurred to her that he’d asked her a question. It took her a little longer to remember what it had been. “Wonderful,” she finally answered.

            “Captain Shirogane!”

            She wasn’t aware humans were capable of personal teleportation but it seemed as if the captain was suddenly several steps away from her. She felt cold from his absence, and if their intruder had been an Altean, she would’ve had some stern words for them.

            But she had to swallow her annoyance at the major’s interruption and put on a smile. “Major Iverson, please do keep your voice down in the Chapel of Memories.”

            “Oh,” he whispered immediately. “Forgive me, Your Highness.”

            “You can speak at a normal volume,” she told him. “Just no yelling. It disturbs them.”

            “Them?” he asked.

            “Every stone is imbued with the memories of someone deceased,” the captain informed his superior officer. “This particular chapel is for royalty and great heroes.” It was an oversimplification, but not much different than what she’d told him, really.

            The major had enough grace to look embarrassed. “Forgive me,” he said again.

            “Forgiven. You didn’t know. I was just telling the captain about it,” she said brightly. “Did you require the captain’s presence for something?” _I hope not._

            “Yes, Your Highness.” _Damn._ Major Iverson looked to Captain Shirogane. “Pre-flight checks, double-checking craft spaceworthiness. All the usual.”

            “Yes, sir. Right away.” He turned back to her. “Thank you for this. It was fascinating.”

            She smiled at him. “I’ll see you at dinner, won’t I? Both of you?” she added quickly, for civility’s sake.

            Iverson answered. “Of course, Your Highness. Excuse us.” He headed for the door.

            The captain tarried only a moment longer, then bowed and followed his superior out.

            _Time is never on our side_ , her mother had said. Allura could feel the weight of those words in her chest.

 

 

            Once she was safely away from the table, she hurried after him. It had been hard to concoct a believable excuse to leave right after the captain, and she was fairly sure Father hadn’t bought it, but that didn’t matter now. “Captain!” she called, slowing a bit so she wouldn’t look as flustered (and desperate) as she felt. _He’s leaving in the morning. This is the last chance._

He turned. “Princess?” He seemed surprised. “Is something wrong?”

            _You’re leaving tomorrow_. “No, I just... was going the same direction, and…” _Coward_ , she chastised herself.

            He arched an eyebrow. “Going the same direction… in a hurry?”

            _So much for **that**. _ “I wanted to catch up with you,” she admitted. An idea occurred to her, and she grabbed his hand. “Come with me.”

            As usual, he didn’t resist being pulled along. “Something else you wanted to show me?”

            “Yes. I’m glad this happened while you were still here. And I know the perfect place, too.”

            “Place for what?”

            “You’ll see!”

            She hauled him straight to her room, and when the door opened for them and he realized, he started stammering. She ignored that and pulled him past her bed and out onto her balcony. “There!” she said triumphantly, leaning on the railing.

            The twin moons of Altea were both bright and full in the sky, filling the night with silvery light. They reigned over the sky, and the moonlight twinkled on the lake beneath the castle. The captain’s breath caught in his throat. “Wow.”

            She watched him, his eyes wide. He looked so enraptured, so soft and filled with wonder. She loved experiencing this through him; it was like it was all new for her again, too. She smiled, feeling warm inside despite the chilly breeze.

            She looked back to the moons briefly. She laid a hand on his nearest arm. “Stay here and enjoy it. I’ll be back shortly.” He just nodded, gaze still rapt upon the sky. She smiled wider and slipped back into her room.

            It took her only a few doboshes. Her hurry was unseemly, but she couldn’t care about that. She wanted to see if the captain would look at her the way he looked at the sky.

            She walked back out onto the balcony, and the sound of the doors sliding open alerted him to presence. He turned back to her, smiling. “Wel-…” He stopped, smile fading as he stared.

            _Close enough_ , she thought, standing there in her thinnest, shortest robe and not a stitch else. She’d bought this robe because it shimmered faintly and was almost-but-not-quite see-through. It showed outlines and left the details to the viewer’s imagination.

            “Princess,” he managed, swallowing, eyes still roaming her body.

            She smiled innocently. “Allura,” she corrected again, walking over to him.

            He sucked in a breath as she approached and finally pulled his eyes back up to her face. “I…” He licked his lips. “…shouldn’t…”

            “Shouldn’t what?” she asked softly. She kept her height the same, to let him be a bit taller than her, let him feel a bit more in control. Besides, she didn’t want anything false between them. Not right now.

            His mouth moved with no sound coming out.

            She laid a finger against his lips. “Captain Shirogane, you’re leaving tomorrow to go home. You and I will be so very far away from each other. There’s nothing we can do about that. This is your last night here, and I… I want to be as close to you as I can be. As close as you’ll let me, anyway.” She let her hand fall to his waist.

            He swallowed hard and said something quietly. Even as close as she was to him, as good as her hearing was, she couldn’t understand it, and she cocked her head. “What was that?”

            He cleared his throat, closed his eyes, and seemed to steady himself. And when his eyes opened again, he smiled shakily and reached a hand up to brush his fingertips across her cheek lightly. “My first name,” he said. “Takashi.”

            She beamed up at him, and slid her hands up his chest, over the buttons and insignia of his uniform, to loop her arms around his neck. “Takashi,” she repeated softly.

            He leaned in towards her and, lips a whisper away from hers, said, “Allura,” before he kissed her.

            She pulled him back into her room. Unlike all the other times she’d hauled him around, this wasn’t just a lack of resistance; he came willingly, eagerly. Her hands worked on his belt as he unbuttoned his uniform coat. His clothes fell to the floor piece by piece, and after each article was stripped off, he’d kiss her again as if the separation of ticks had been years.

            “I’ve wanted this so long,” she whispered against his ear as he kissed her neck. “So many nights spent dreaming of you.”

            “How many?” he asked against the skin of her throat. His breath was hot but it raised chills on her where he had lapped with his tongue.

            “Too many,” she asserted. She hauled his head up so she could kiss him again, and he held her tightly.

            “I might be dreaming this now,” he panted when she let him have use of his mouth again.

            “Don’t wake up,” she commanded. “Not yet.”

            “I won’t,” he agreed huskily. He pushed her back towards her bed, and when her legs hit the side, she pulled him down with her. He kissed her again, deeply, and his hand slid over her still-robed body. It thrilled her to feel the press of his hand through the soft fabric, over her breast, her stomach, down her side to her bare legs. He stroked the skin of her thigh softly with rough fingertips. The contrast thrilled her; it seemed to her such an apt summation of him: the gentle warrior. _Her_ gentle warrior… at least for tonight.

            As he resumed kissing his way down her neck, his hand slid up under the robe. It was almost more illicit than being purely naked was, as if the mere existence of fabric – however little there was of it – made his touching her skin furtive, naughty. She arched up to get more of her body into his palm.

            “You are incredible,” he breathed, kissing into the open V of her chest that the robe exposed.

            She smiled and licked her lips. “You are fascinating,” she replied.

            His hand slipped out of the folds of her robe and went, finally, to her sash. “I wish I…”

            She put her finger against his lips again. “No. Don’t say it. Don’t even think of it right now.”

            He kissed her finger. “How do you know what I was going to say?”

            “Because there’s only one wish I can think of right now, and it can’t come true for either of us. So let’s not think about it. That’s tomorrow morning; focus on tonight. On _me_.” _On us_ , she didn’t say.

            He smiled. “Gladly.” When she dropped her hand again, he surged forward to kiss her, deeply. It was almost as if she could feel his heart through this kiss.

            He broke away and resumed untying her sash, shooing fabric away from her shoulder and chest. His gaze was hungry, and he licked his lips as if in anticipation. She laid there for a moment and let him do as he pleased, watching him, trying to memorize her always impeccable captain in the same desperate disarray she felt. _Don’t think about it_. It was hard not to.

            _Time is never on our side._

            She wanted to savor these moments with him, let the taste of him linger in her mouth and the feel of him haunt her skin. But there was so little time. They had only this night, and then never again…

            He broke her reverie when his lips closed around one of her nipples. Even though she’d watched him bend to her breast in the moonlight, she’d been so caught up that his intentions hadn’t registered. She gasped in surprise and then writhed under the heat of his mouth. His hand palmed her other breast, thumb flicking over the nipple there as his tongue followed suit. She moaned softly, watching him, his long lashes fluttering closed.

            She let her own eyes close, let her head roll back, let herself stop thinking and just _feel_. His mouth left her and he blew a soft stream of air in his wake that made her shiver. He swapped hand for mouth and vice versa. She combed her hand into his hair. His free hand slid down her side, back to her thigh again. She brought her leg up, skimming it against his side and letting his hand have more to caress. He stroked the back of her thigh and moaned against her breast.

            Her arms’ range of movement was limited by the open-but-not-off robe, but so long as she could touch him and know he was real, she hardly cared. He began to kiss his way down her body. “You are so beautiful, Allura.” She opened her eyes and raised her head enough to look at him and was surprised to see his eyes intensely focused on her face. “I wonder if you taste as good as you feel.”

            She felt her face catch fire even as she grinned. “Do you want to find out?”

            “I like exploration and discovery,” he reminded her and they both laughed. _I’ve never felt so comfortable with a lover before_. _Never laughed when I had them in my bed with me. It was always about getting off but this is so much more. This isn’t like scratching an itch or sating a hunger._

            Not that she didn’t hunger for him. Her body trembled with her desire and anticipation as he gently pushed her legs apart, slid his hands under her to lift her up even as he lowered his mouth to her. He apparently hungered as well, judging by the groans and hums of pleasure he made. She arched into him, biting her lip to keep herself from getting too loud. The corridors were patrolled, after all. Who knew where the guards were right now?

            “Takashi,” she managed around shuddering breaths, and his name made him break his rhythm to pant against her wet heat. He looked up at her and she had to swallow hard and close her eyes to focus on breathing. What she wanted to say was, _I need you inside me the way I’ve never needed anyone. I’ve waited so long for this and I can’t stand to wait a moment longer._ What came out was, “Please.”

            But he seemed to understand. He moved up to kiss her again, and she could taste herself on his lips and tongue. She held him there for a long moment, but he pulled away to align himself. She bit her lip and reached down to take hold of him, earning a gasp from him now as she took over this task. He was so hot in her hands, and she lost herself for a moment in playing with him. He shuddered as she rubbed the tip of his cock and spread the fluid already welling up from him over his length. “Allura,” and she was both pleased and aggrieved to hear him beg, the latter because she didn’t want to torment him (at the moment anyway) and the former because it reassured her that she wasn’t the only one in need. She stopped teasing.

            It was almost a reflex, like her body was remembering an oft-repeated action: as he pushed into her, she wrapped her legs around him. She arched just a little at just the right time and he moaned with her at the increased sensation. She gripped his shoulders and he bowed his head to the crook of her neck as their bodies moved closer until they were pressed together.

            There was a quiet moment of completion, of acceptance, of just existing in the rightness of each other. And then they began to move. She wasn’t sure if she moved first or if he had, but it didn’t matter. They were in rhythm with each other so quickly, so _certainly_. It was like dancing or sparring, like she knew what his next move would be and exactly how to counter it.

            His name was a broken moan on her lips. She could almost taste his pleasure, his hands between her skin and the robe, pressing her against him as if he could somehow get them even closer. It was intoxicating to be desired so fully, to know he needed her as badly as she needed him. She thought she might combust from the heat, but she didn’t care.

            He panted her name raggedly, his voice fraying with loss of control. Her handsome, collected captain, undone because of her. It was almost too much to take, and she was so close to the edge. “I… oh, _God_ , Allura…”

            She felt she knew what he was trying to say and she grabbed his head to kiss him hard. _Don’t say it. Don’t make it real, because then it will hurt so much more tomorrow when you leave. Because if you say it, then I have to, as well. And I_ can’t _. It’s too painful to let you go if I say it._

He ripped his lips away from hers right as the first pulse of her climax hit her. Her back arched off the bed, body pressing against his, and he was stuttering out a groan of his own as she felt him come, deep within her, where he belonged. His pleasure mingled with her own as her body eased down against her mattress, mind and soul still flying high, little aftershocks still lighting up her nerves.

            He kissed her again, somewhat sloppily, and sighed. He started to roll off of her and she held him in place. “You’re not heavy to me,” she told him. “You don’t have to move.”

            “Oh, thank God,” he said, and she laughed again, combing his hair with her fingers.

            They laid together and caught their breath.

            “Don’t go,” she said at last, when her voice was steady enough to get it out.

            “I have to.”

            “No, I don’t mean that.” He pushed himself up to look down at her. “Stay here tonight. Don’t leave me yet.”

            “I won’t,” he promised, bending to kiss her. “But I do have to sleep at some point.”

            “You will. But not yet. We have so little time…”

            “I know.” He brushed a sweat-damp tendril of her hair away from her face. “I’m not tired right now anyway.”

            She expected a cheeky grin, but instead he smiled at her so soft and sweet that it made her want to cry. She smiled back at him, then pushed him over. “Good. Because I’d like to do some exploring of my own.”

 

 

            When she awoke, he was gone, and if it weren’t for the mess of the sheets, she might’ve thought she’d dreamed the whole thing. Then she looked at the nearest ticker. “Quiznak!” She leapt out of bed and hurried to shower and dress.

            She made it to the farewell ceremony just in the tick of time. “For a moment, I thought you weren’t coming to bid our guests good-bye,” her father teased her.

            “I wouldn’t dream of it,” she said primly. She was in Princess Mode; it was the only way she thought she’d survive.

            One by one, the diplomatic mission from Earth came through to say their good-byes. She smiled and thanked them all. Shiro, as the junior member, was the last one in line. As Major Iverson before him had done, he saluted her. “Thank you for your hospitality, Princess. I’ve enjoyed learning about your world.”

            She smiled and tried to keep herself in check. “As I have enjoyed learning about yours, Captain. Do take care of yourself.”

            He nodded and dropped the salute, then moved on to address her father. She didn’t really hear what he said; she was torn between watching him while she could and not looking at him at all. Her heart ached to hug him and kiss him one last time, but it wouldn’t be proper. Not in front of the court.

            He headed for their ship, following the rest of his fellow Earthlings. When Iverson boarded, she saw Captain Shirogane stop and turn back. He smiled in the early morning sunlight, and her mind flashed back to the night before, to the way he had looked at the twin moons. He was looking at her like that now, and she felt the tears well up even as she smiled in return. He turned and jogged to the ship. The door shut behind him.

            She stood with her Father and the other courtiers as the ship’s primitive engines shook the ground. In a storm of heat and swirling clouds of dust, it pushed off into the sky. She watched it become no more than a glint of light, and then even that was gone.

            The courtiers started to file away, but she stayed, watching the spot in the sky where the ship had been.

            “Well, that was interesting,” her father’s voice said beside her. She made a noncommittal noise. “Did you not find the Earthlings as fascinating as I did?”

            “Yes, of course I did, Father.”

            “Well, I hope you mean that. I was discussing the possibility of a diplomatic mission of our own to Earth.” That was what finally got her to drop her eyes from the sky, head whipping to her father in surprise. “Naturally, I have too many duties here to be able to go. I thought that, given how well you got on with them, you could lead the mission. It would be an excellent learning experience for a future queen, after all.”

            She smiled. “I would like that, Father, very much. Thank you.”

            He patted her shoulder. “Good. We’ll start discussing plans then.” He headed back into the castle.

            Allura paused to look up at the sky again, smiled, and then turned to follow her father.


End file.
